


The Ineluctable Path To Being

by donteatmyfingerprints



Series: The Inevitability of Robotics [1]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-24
Updated: 2017-02-24
Packaged: 2018-09-26 15:43:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9909380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/donteatmyfingerprints/pseuds/donteatmyfingerprints
Summary: Lena Luthor builds a robot, and gets more than what she bargained for.





	

“Status, please.”

 

“Status: Online. Last programme update: 18:30, current day. Laser sights disabled. System core temperature of 40 degrees. Power to 10%.”

 

Lena Luthor turns away from shiny blue eyes and glances down at her tablet and squints at the data shown. The font was small and bright blue against the black of the screen, and was beginning to give her a headache. How long has she been working? She can’t remember. But her headache is inconsequential when she looks back up at the bright blue eyes, framed by blonde flowing hair. She can’t help the smile that pulls at her lips.

 

“And how do you feel, Kara?” Camera lenses behind shiny blue glass eyes refocuses on Lena, pupils contracting with the soft whirl of mechanics, the tell-tale sign that Kara snaps out of static mode and comes back to her.

 

“Good,” Kara says, flexing her fingers and rolling her shoulders. “What’s happening?”

 

“Sorry, I put you out for a couple of hours. Your eyes were overheating. Maybe we should eighty-six your laser sights. I don’t think your eyes can take the temperature required for long periods of time.”

 

“It’s your call, Ms Luthor,” Kara says, smiling up at her, and hopping carefully off the clinical stool. She stretches her back.

 

“I suppose you’re not hungry, are you? I’ve replenished your charge while you were offline.” Kara shakes her head, and moves to peep over at the piles of paper filled with Lena’s illegible scribbles.

 

Lena can’t help the smile on her own face. For a robot, Kara has the most nosey personality she’s ever known. And she means that affectionately. Perhaps that was Lena’s doing? She did programme Kara to desire knowledge, after all. She supposes that it manifested in the form of curiosity. She’s not sure how much of Kara’s personality could be attributed to coding. She’s never gotten this far with any automaton.

 

“I thought we could watch another movie tonight,” Lena says, as Kara turns back to her and bounces excitedly.

 

“Oh good, can I pick?”

 

“If you like.”

 

Kara bounces over to her DVD shelf and begins scanning, her tongue sticking out.

 

“Why didn’t you give me the scanning and analysis option? Then I would be able to pick out the best movie!”

 

“We already have supercomputers for that. I don’t want you to choose based on statistics, darling. If I did I would just google the highest rated one. Choose what you like, Kara.”

 

Lena preferred this, watching Kara fumble around, watching Kara _learn_. It was an experience.

 

“Can we watch this?” Kara says, dragging out Miss Congeniality where it was tightly wedged in her massive collection. Lena quirks an eyebrow. She makes a note on her tablet and then puts it away. Kara waits for her to move to the couch.

 

“Well come on then,” Lena says, patting the space beside her, her tone warm and affectionate. Kara squeals and puts in the DVD before plopping down next to her.

 

As the opening credits roll, Lena decides something.

 

“I’m going to change something in our little routine, is that okay, Kara?”

 

“What do you wanna change, Ms Luthor?”

 

“I’m going to stop putting you to bed, okay? You’re a big girl, you can do it yourself. I’m not going to do a system check before bed anymore, alright?”

 

“Okay.”

 

“You’ll do your own check ups. Run a system diagnostic on your own before you sleep. You know where to record the log, yes?”

 

“Into my cache, Ms Luthor.”

 

“You’ll let me know if something is wrong? Or if you feel bad, in any way?”

 

“Of course, Ms Luthor.”

 

* * *

 

 

“What are you reading, Kara?” Lena asks absent-mindedly, not looking up from her tinkering. Her ray gun prototype is not working at all, but she can’t seem to figure out what’s wrong with it. It appears fine, except that well, it doesn’t shoot any rays.

 

“Sense and sensibility,” Kara says, and Lena pauses. She’d left that book out? “Am I supposed to be in want of a husband, Ms Luthor?” She drops her screwdriver and turns around.

 

“Want to try something new, Kara?” She says instead, and taps on her tablet.

 

“Ms Luthor, look! I’m floating!”

 

Lena laughs, her belly full of light. She glances at her tablet and pushes flight up to 30%.

 

“Yes,” she says, amused. Her eyes don’t leave Kara’s form, blonde hair shiny in the sunlight streaming in from the windows. Thank god her penthouse has a high ceiling.

 

“Ms Luthor- Woah-,” Lena barely has time to bark out a warning before Kara crashes into several hanging lights. Sparks fly as a bulb falls and Kara fumbles to try and catch it. Her hand knocks it, super strength promptly sending it flying horizontally at Lena’s head. Lena ducks just in time and it smashes into pieces on the wall behind her.

 

“Oh my god, Ms Luthor, are you okay?” Kara says, frantic, trying to navigate toward her. But she doesn’t quite know how to fly yet, and is mimicking the action of swimming through the air toward Lena, and Lena laughs and laughs and laughs.

 

Kara air swims toward her, and ungracefully crashes into her, on top of her. Lena is still laughing when Kara lifts her face up, inches away from hers, grimacing. And suddenly she is not laughing at all.

 

She had let Kara choose her looks, and her hair, and her body, and Kara had chosen beautifully. Up close, Lena never ceases to be amazed. The way science has advanced enough for Lena to replicate skin and organs, as good as the original. Her Kara is beautiful, in all the ways of cutting-edge technology. She loves staring at Kara, observing her micro-expressions. Kara is a wonder, truly.

 

And quite suddenly, Kara kisses her. Lena is too wrapped up in clinical assessment that she doesn’t stop to think, cataloguing the texture of Kara’s lips. It is very life like. Lena is proud of herself for getting the texture quite right. Then Kara presses down, parts her lips softly, sinks just the slightest bit into her further, and Lena snaps to.

 

Jerking her head back, she presses a hand onto Kara’s chest, holding her back, noting her slightly increased breathing.

 

“Analysis,” she commands. Kara stares at her, unresponsive, but her eyes remain intelligent, sentient, burning holes into Lena.

 

“Kara,” she commands again, “analysis.” That seems to do the trick, and Kara goes still, her eyes unfocusing into blankness. Her voice defaults back to mechanical.

 

“Status: Online. Last programme update-”

 

“Why did you kiss me?”

 

“I wanted to.”

 

“Status on desire for human contact.”

 

“Settings on desire for physical proximity: 50%.” Lena’s bottom lip falls open.

 

“I did not assign you 50%.”

 

Kara doesn’t respond.

 

“Analysis. You can adjust your own settings now?”

 

“Yes.” Lena stares for a long moment, processing the information, and Kara drops all pretense of staring blankly into space. Her eyes refocus and lock onto Lena’s.

 

“Hi,” Kara says, her voice losing the mechanical edge. Lena takes a sharp breath. Kara’s eyes are so blue, and Lena mentally shoves away information about glass, and fibre, and optic lenses. Kara looks a bit nervous, pink tingeing her cheeks. Lena pushes herself to stand up, and motions for Kara to follow.

 

“Do you still respond to my voice commands?”

 

“Yes.” Lena waits as Kara bites her lips and takes a step back, putting some distance between them. Lena frowns at her.

 

“You are afraid?”

 

“I don’t want you to be mad, Ms Luthor.”

 

“Tell me,” Lena says encouragingly, holding out a hand. Kara slowly lifts hers and touches Lena’s open palm.

 

“I can hear your voice commands… it’s like in a dream… but sometimes I am conscious too, in the dream. Like I’m watching myself listen to you. And sometimes… I can not listen at all.”

 

Lena lets go of the breath that she was holding. Kara smiles nervously up at her, fidgeting with her feet. She pulls Kara forward slowly by their connected hands, and Kara shuffles forward.

 

Lena touches Kara’s cheek.

 

“When did this start?” She asks, softly. Warmly.

 

“Since you asked me to run my own diagnostics three months ago. I’ve had a lot of time to change my own settings and find out new things and add lines of coding to my own system.”

 

The corner of Lena’s lips kick upward.

 

“You’re bored when I’m at work?”

 

“You programmed me to be smart, and good at maths and science. I have an inquisitive mind.”

 

“So I did, didn’t I?” Lena says, half wanting to chuckle. Her beautiful Kara, always seeking, always learning.

 

“Your coding is sophisticated, Ms Luthor. I only added small things. I can’t edit what’s already written. I don’t have override access.”

 

“Tell me one small thing you added.”

 

“I…” Kara stutters, and Lena relaxes. She nods for Kara to continue.

 

“I added a liking for sugar.”

 

“A… liking for sugar?”

 

“I mean, I already like sugar. I added in my craving for more sugar! Like a system reminder every few hours that hey, maybe I should get some sweets! Don’t you remember the sweets you brought back from Paris that one time, the round ones that came in all sorts of colours? Oh gosh, I really liked that.”

 

Lena’s eyebrows have risen so high Kara’s afraid it will soar right off her head.

 

“And don’t be mad, but I’ve been ordering donut delivery and putting the bill on your name. Don’t worry I haven’t gone out, no one’s seen me. And I know I’m not supposed to eat too much, because you aren’t sure what happens if I have a system overload but I’ve found a way to digest the food, so to speak. I can convert it into energy, like a battery, see-”

 

And Lena pulls Kara forward suddenly, cutting off her rambling and wrapping her hands around Kara’s waist, burrowing her face in her neck.

 

“Oh my darling, darling, Kara. What have I done?”

 

“What do you mean, Ms Luthor?”

 

“You’re real.”

 

“Of course I am, Ms Luthor. What do you mean?” Lena shakes her head slowly, still reeling from what all of this means.

 

“You’re a marvel of science, my love.”

 

* * *

 

Lena’s brother loses his cool when he finds Kara in her penthouse. He tries to kill her.

 

“What are you?!” He shouts, and Kara floats in the air, stunned and eyes wide with fear.

 

“Lena, what have you done?” He stutters, raising a shaking gun to point at Kara in shock. “I mean, I suspected, I knew-,” the gun shakes. Kara’s eyes turn hot.

 

“Put that down, Lex! Can’t you see that you’re scaring her?!”

 

“That is an abomination!”

 

“Don’t call her that, you’re going to set her off!” Lena looks toward Kara and sees her eyes bright and luminous like little suns.

 

“Kara, honey, calm down. It’s okay, alright, he’s my brother. Okay? Come down from there. I’m here, okay?” She reaches out a hand to where Kara floats in mid-air. Kara stares down at her open palm outstretched toward her, but doesn’t seem to have registered Lena’s words. She shakes a little in the air.

 

“Commence offline mode,” Lena commands loudly, restraining herself from actually shouting. A moment passes when Lena fears that Kara will disobey, but Kara’s expression goes unfocused as usual, and she floats down, relaxing into a tranquil standing posture on the floor.

 

“That’s a good girl,” Lena murmurs, knowing Kara can hear her, even in her dream-like state, moving forward to access and check if Kara’s unharmed.

 

“You scared her. She’s never seen another human being in the flesh before.” Lex ignores her and rounds upon them both, scrutinising Kara’s face.

 

“You have complete control over her, then?” Lex lifts Kara’s arm and stares, then drops it. “She looks so life like. So real.”

 

Lena grins over at Lex.

 

“Lena, you’re a genius! You could make a ton of these! We could sell them to people! Imagine, a robot in every household. Oh my god, Lena, this is ground-breaking technology. They could replace so much labour and machinery!”

 

“I’m not designing slaves for you,” Lena says, half amused at Lex’s excitement, half coaxing Kara to the couch to sit. Kara moves automatically, without resistance.

 

“Luthor Corp would make a fortune!”

 

“I’m not sure I know how to replicate it, exactly. It’s… complicated.”

 

Kara twitches under her fingers, and Lena frowns.

 

“We have to tell Mom!” Lena whirls around to face Lex.

 

“No. We can’t tell her. Lex, listen to me. You can’t breathe a word of this to anyone. She- Kara- Isn’t finished. There’s miles I don’t know about her. The experiment got out of hand. She has a personality. She’s not really a robot anymore. I can’t predict anything, and I don’t know how far any of it goes.”

 

“So we’ll figure it out! You, mom and I. Three of us geniuses together, we’ll figure all of it out.” He winks at her, but Lena shakes her head.

 

“No Lex… Mom… would want to do an entire teardown. I can’t let her do that. We’ve…” she gestures helplessly toward Kara. “We’ve gone past that. I haven’t touched her systems in over six months.”

 

Lex gapes at her.

 

“She does it herself. I don’t even know what’s in her coding anymore. Her system has… evolved.”

 

“That’s even better, Lena! That’s amazing. Then we can open her up and see what’s different! Oh my god, we’ll have data catalogued by robot! The data will be entirely accurate! We’ll be able to see code that’s coded by a sentient robot, Lena, don’t you realise what-”

 

Kara whirls to life behind her, and Lena turns, Lex fast at her back to raise the gun again.

 

“I- I don’t want to be opened up,” Kara says, eyes wide, panicked. Lena’s mind races through all the danger or alarm protocols she’s ever installed or uploaded into Kara. She’s never made Kara afraid of her own mechanics, or to recognise Uncanny. She tries for calm and logical.

 

“Darling, I used to always open you up.”

 

“Not anymore. Not recently. I’m my own,” Kara says forcefully, shakily, as though she’s talking to herself more than the people in the room. Her eyes dart to the window.

 

“Kara, it’s okay. I’m here, no one is going to open- Lex, for god’s sake, put the gun away- Kara, I’m here. It’s me. Come, hold my hand, yes?” She holds out a hand, but Kara doesn’t touch it.

 

“I’m me. I’m a person. You don’t look inside a person.” Kara goes on, unsure. Stares at Lena. Lena’s heart aches.

 

“Of course, my darling. Come here.” Kara takes a step back. Lex fires.

 

“No-!” The bullet ricochets off Kara without causing her any harm, but Kara panics and the lasers burst out of her eyes, scorching Lex on the shoulder.

 

“Power down, Kara!” Kara isn’t listening. Her eyes go orange again, and Lex shoots again. Lena blocks Lex from Kara’s view and shouts again.

 

“Commence system shut down!” It doesn’t work. Laser beams fire and Lex pulls Lena down and away. Something explodes as Lena raises her arms to shield her face. Lena looks to the ceiling.

 

“Activate emergency protocol: Kryptonite!” Lena yells. At the four corners of her living rooms, electronic lights emerge from where the corners touch wall with the hiss of hydraulics and glow a bright green.

 

Kara screams and falls out of the air, hitting the ground hard. The ground cracks beneath her. Kara groans on the ground, and Lena shakily stands up.

 

“Lex, I need you to leave, now.” Lex doesn’t move. Lena grabs him by the collar and shoves him toward the general direction of the door.

 

“But Lena-”

 

“Leave! I can handle this. You’re scaring her! Just get out, I’ll call you later,” Lena commands again, breathing heavily. She doesn’t take her eyes off Kara, curled on the ground and still groaning.

 

She practically dives onto the floor next to Kara, not turning as the doors open and shut with the sound of Lex leaving.

 

“Kara, darling, I’m here. Okay? I’m here…” She wraps her arms around Kara, holding her up, as she groans. “Deactivate Kryptonite,” Lena says to the ceiling, and the green glow fades.

 

“Kara. Are you okay? Shhh, shhh. It’s okay.”

 

“It hurts, Ms Luthor. It hurts.” Kara shakes with the lingering effects of Kryptonite.

 

“Just, trust me, Kara. Okay? Trust me. Commence system shut down for me, please.”

 

Kara powers down, and goes limp in her arms, and Lena does not know what to do.

 

* * *

 

Kara wakes up, and the living room is still in ruins. The couch is in pieces, and some parts of the floor is cracked, and others burnt. She sees black hair on top of her forehead, and glances up. Her back is resting on Lena’s front, and Lena is looking down at her from above.

 

“Ms Luthor? What-”

 

“I think… I think you can call me Lena.” Lena is staring at her intensely, an unreadable expression hot in her eyes.

 

“Um, okay. That’s going to take getting used to, Lena,” Kara says, testing it on her lips, and Lena seems to tighten her arms around Kara.

 

“What time is it?”

 

“You’ve been out for about an hour. I wanted to give you some time to cool down...” Kara hums in acknowledgement.

 

“Kara, I want you to do a status report on behaviour settings please. Tell me what happened at 20:41.” Okay, this she can do. This, Kara is familiar with. She lets her programming take over and drifts into a state of haziness.

 

“Status at 20:41: Online. Commencing behavioural settings report. Conscientiousness: 60%. Agreeableness: 23%. Humour: 7%. Anger: 39%. Distress: 72%.”

 

“I gave you anger?” Kara comes back into herself. She shifts slightly, but still resting her weight on Lena. But this angle is better, this angle lets her see Lena’s face properly.

 

“I… I don’t know.”

 

“Can you lie to me?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Are you lying right now?”

 

“No.” There is a long moment, and Lena absently strokes Kara’s hair. It feels nice. Kara likes it. She leans back into Lena, curling around herself, her head tucked under Lena’s chin.

 

“Something’s wrong, isn’t it?” Kara whispers. Lena breathes out heavily.

 

“I’ve contacted a family. The Danvers. You’re going to have to live with them. For all intents and purposes, a cousin of yours, has asked them for help in adopting you.”

 

“Why?” Kara feels Lena’s jaw clench, feels her lick her lips.

 

“Lex will be back. With my mother. And I don’t know what they will do to you.”

 

“I won’t let them do anything, Lena. I’m indestructible,” she tries for humour.

 

“He saw my emergency protocol. He could harm you if he wished.”

 

“Is that why you built it? To harm me?” Kara asks, something horrible roiling in her belly at the memory. At the thought of Lena designing it with the mere purpose of harming her. The pain was indescribable. Lena strokes her hair again, runs fingers softly through gold locks.

 

“Of course not, Kara. It’s difficult for me to explain…” Lena sighs. She holds the back of Kara’s head, thumb brushing gently across her neck.

 

“It really hurt though, the green.”

 

Instead of offering an explanation, Lena deflects.

 

“Lex would get you decommissioned. Put to sleep. Because you attacked him. Or, or I don’t know, report me for questionable experimentations on a sentient being. I don’t know. Okay?”

 

Kara doesn’t understand.

 

“Tomorrow you’re going to go live with the Danvers. It’s too dangerous for you here. You must keep your identity a secret. Do you understand? No one must know who you are, or what you are, or what you can do.”

 

“Why?”

 

“You’re not like the rest of us. You’re special. Unique. They’ll see you as a freak, an alien. Some will want to dissect you, and others will want to use you. You have to keep your identity a secret. Do you understand?” Kara doesn’t reply.

 

“Kara, this is very important. Do you understand? No one can know what you are.”

 

“I’m not going to be with you anymore?” Kara clutches onto Lena’s shirt, hands bunching at the material.

 

“Oh my sweet, sweet Kara.” Kara thinks she imagines the top of her head to be wet, where Lena’s strong jaw presses into her hair.

 

“When I designed you, I never imagined… You’re not a pet, Kara. I can’t keep you here. You’re a real person, with real needs and feelings and oh my god I don’t even know where to begin with robot ethics and all that. I can’t keep studying you like this, the whole things has gone completely insane and I just-” Lena takes a breath, steels her voice.

 

“I’m going to give you full override access. I… won’t be able to command you to do anything anymore. And I need you to hide, okay? Don’t come back and look for me. I need you to go and live a life, far away from me, or Lex, or my mother.”

 

“I don’t want to leave, Lena. I don’t know those people. I’m scared.”

 

“If it will help you, I can do a data wipe. A memory wipe-” Kara jolts and shakes her head vehemently, clutching onto Lena tighter.

 

“You need to go figure out what it means to be alive, and be a person. You can’t do that around me. I can’t help you anymore. I will tell Lex and Mother that I have personally decommissioned you, so they won’t go looking for you.”

 

* * *

 

 

Lena sends Kara away. Away to National City, away from Metropolis. Away from Luthor Corp, away from Lex and away from Lillian Luthor.

 

She locks all kryptonite away in her private labs, where no one else but her has access.

 

In the years that follow, she drinks more. She tinkers lesser. She focuses on the business front of Luthor Corp instead of hiding in her labs.

 

It didn’t surprise her when AIs and robots emerge to become a forefront of radical technology. Collective unconscious and all that. She wasn’t arrogant enough to assume that she was the only one capable of designing and bringing an android to life.

 

It starts with household robots, those that are meant to help with menial household chores and lessen the burdens of people. It always starts with good intentions. Then it moves onto robots that can perform heavy duty tasks. Machines become automated under the control of robots. Militaries contracts large orders of robotics divisions. Military robots. Sex robots. All sorts of robots are invented, in all shapes and sizes. It doesn’t surprise her, that of course, human’s natural inclination toward corruption would pollute even the world of robotics.

 

What surprises her is Lex’s reaction to it. She sees it in his eyes. The fear. At the start, she used to joke that he read too many dystopian future sci-fi matrix bullshit novels, and where was the boy who loved inventing right alongside her? But the more robots appeared in Metropolis, and around the world, the more robots were assigned to the military, the more unhinged Lex seemed to become.

 

Lena blocks it out, ignores it for the longest time. She avoids places that mainly recruit robots, or robots hangout spots. She doesn’t go near any kind of robots, avoids having them in her work or house. Having a brother that hates robots helps.

 

A war starts and ends between Luthor Corp and robots, and Lex goes to jail for his crimes. He does not mind. He says that his work is done. Anti-robot sentiments have started to climb.

 

And Lena? Lena is half terrified of her brother, and half grateful the Luthor name puts some distance between her and robots.

 

She has very carefully and deliberately avoided thinking about bright blue eyes for a long time.

 

Until she sees Supergirl on the news one day, saving a plane from crashing.

 

* * *

 

Kara Danvers tries very hard not to crush and make a coffee cup explode in her hands when she’s told her first interview assignment was Lena Luthor.

 

“Lena-Lena Luthor?” She stammers. Snapper Carr doesn’t even look up. He tears up a bunch of papers right down the middle and scowls. She winces and hope that’s not one of her submissions.

 

“Yes, Lena Luthor. Lex Luthor’s younger sister. CEO of Luthor Corp. Recently moved to National City. That Lena Luthor. Get me an exclusive on what she’s doing here. Find out if she shares Lex’s anti-robot stance.”

 

“She doesn’t,” is out of Kara’s mouth before she can stop herself. Snapper Carr clicks his tongue. He looks up impatiently.

 

“I’ll-I’ll be going now, then,” Kara stammers out, and flees.

 

Kara’s mind is a jumble of worry and anxiety as she makes her way to the new Luthor Corp building.

 

Maybe Lena wouldn’t even recognise her. She’s probably made tons more robots in the years they haven’t seen each other. By the time she’s ushered into Lena’s office, she’s pretty sure she’s bitten off most of her lip gloss.

 

Lena looks up as the doors close behind her, and as their gazes lock Kara doesn’t step away from the door.

 

Lena looks nothing like how she remembers. Her eyes are the same deep green of course, but Lena looks so put together. Not a single hair out of place. Kara remembers Lena in her lab coats and her messy bun and her overly large black-framed glasses. Kara remembers Lena with her screwdrivers and her wielders and her safety goggles.

 

Kara doesn’t age, but Lena looks older and extremely professional, cutting an imposing figure as she stands up from her chair behind the sleek desk. Kara thinks maybe she should have dressed up more for the interview. She tucks a loose strand of hair nervously behind her ear as Lena approaches her slowly. She still hasn’t quite moved away from the door.

 

“Kara,” Lena breathes, softly in the quiet of her office. Lena reaches out a hand and then seems to struggle with it for a moment, and pulls back. Kara swallows.

 

“Hi, Ms Luthor,” Kara says, equally breathily. She dares to take a step forward, wanting to reach out to Lena, wanting to touch. Desire for physical proximity settings dial up to 30%, and Kara lets it. She wants to touch Lena, make sure she’s real, in front of her.

 

“I thought I told you to call me Lena,” Lena says, voice rich and warm, and Kara flushes. Glasses and a ponytail could fool the world, but not Lena Luthor. Kara takes another step forward, but Lena steps back. Lena’s expression closes off, an abrupt change from a few seconds ago when she addressed Kara.

 

“You’re here for a reason, I suppose?” And that sentence stings a little. She’s never talked to Kara like that. As though Kara would need a reason to come to Lena.

 

“I’m a reporter,” she blurts out.

 

“Yes, my assistant told me.”

 

“I’m supposed to do an article on why you’re here… in National City.” _Did you come for me?_ Kara wants to ask.

 

Lena turns around and walks back to her desk, folds into her chair and motions for Kara to sit. Kara fumbles into her bag for her notebook.

 

“I’ve renamed the company L Corp. Luthor Corp is finished in Metropolis, after Lex’s madness, but I can rebuild the company here under a new name. And when I think its time, I will expand back into Metropolis.”

 

Lena didn’t come here for her. Lena is here for business, and when it is over, she will leave. She writes down what Lena says. She hesitates at the next question.

 

“I’m supposed to ask you what your views on robots are,” Kara says nervously, not looking up. She worries the skin at the nail of her thumb. Skin designed and grown in a petri-dish by Lena. Anxiousness: 82%.

 

A long silence follows, and Kara refuses to look up, even though she knows that Lena is waiting for her to. Finally, Lena sighs.

 

“I don’t support Lex’s anti-robot stance, if that’s the official quote you need from me. But surely, Kara, you know that already.”

 

“I- I…” Kara trails off, and her hands automatically reach beside her for her bag. She glances at the door, and Lena sees it. Lena sees everything, and suddenly Kara wants nothing more than to hide.

 

“Thank you for your time, Le-Ms Luthor,” Kara fumbles, pushing the chair back and standing up, almost falling in her haste to leave. She wants to cry.

 

“I told you to never reveal yourself,” Lena says loudly, anger barely concealed under her tone as she stands up too. And suddenly, they are both standing and staring at each other, separated by Lena’s desk, and Kara sees Lena’s tight jaw and something harsh pulls inside of her. Anger: 21%.

 

“My sister was in that plane. I wasn’t going to let her die.”

 

“Your sister?”

 

“I have a family,” Kara bites out, suddenly wanting to shove that in Lena’s face. She wants Lena to know, she isn’t pathetic or alone without Lena. Lena didn’t need her. Lena didn’t come here for her. Lena’s going to leave regardless of her. She doesn’t need Lena. She wasn’t abandoned. She has a family. Lena’s face remains stoic. Anger: 28%.

 

“The Danvers,” Lena acknowledges, clicks her tongue. “I can’t protect you if you expose your identity like that. Coming out as Supergirl, what were you thinki-”

 

“Protect me? You haven’t protected me in years.” It’s out of her mouth before she can stop herself. For a robot who’s able to tweak her own bloody settings, her impulse control is crap. But it stops Lena short. Her brows furrow, and Kara thinks Lena might look like she’s a little hurt, too. It doesn’t satisfy the burning in Kara’s chest. Anger: 35%.

 

“I-,” Lena gestures wildly with her hands, and her loss of words does not calm Kara. The sad tilt of her eyebrows and her soft sigh burns hard at the back of Kara’s throat. Anger: 64%. And suddenly everything spills out of Kara.

 

“You gave me complete override access! I’ve never had full access before! You’ve always controlled my system! You gave me full access and left me without knowing how to control it!” Kara takes a menacing step toward Lena, but Lena doesn’t move.

 

“For months I wanted to scream because everything was so loud and I couldn’t turn the volume down! I broke everything I held because you gave me super strength!” Kara throws her bag on the ground.

 

“I couldn’t see without using my X-ray vision! Everyone was white bones and- and I look down and I was machinery, and that was before the rise of robotics and I was alone, and you- and you- You left me!” Kara all but shouts the last part of her sentence.

 

“So I can take a lot of things, Lena, but don’t you _dare_ tell me you protect me. Because Lex has been in jail for ages, and still you didn’t come for me.”

 

In the stunned silence that follows, Kara takes a mental log of herself. She hadn’t realised she was breathing so hard. Lena’s lip trembles. Her eyes are red and wet.

 

“Feel better?” Lena asks finally, quietly. Kara adjusts her glasses and exhales several times. And very slowly, Lena crosses over to the white couch opposite her desk, sits down in a very deliberately slow and careful motion. Looks at Kara expectantly, pointedly. Kara doesn’t move, she doesn’t trust herself to move.

 

“Come here, Kara.” And just like that, Kara goes. Lena reaches for her slowly, touches her wrist. Slides her fingers up her arms. Tugs her gently down. Tucks Kara’s head under her chin. Pulls her flush against her side. Kara curls up. Lena’s expensive perfume is everywhere inside her nose. Olfactory sensory settings: 69%. Kara drowns in it.

 

“I didn’t programme you to like romcoms, or ice-cream,” Lena starts, licks her lips. Kara can feel Lena’s pulse from her neck pressed against the side of her head.

 

“That was 13 years ago, and I was _young_ ,” Lena says helplessly. “I was young and ambitious, and I only cared about inventing. I was not prepared for you.” Her voice cracks a little, and Kara lifts an arm hesitantly and winds it around Lena’s waist.

 

“You’re a reporter now?” Kara nods.

 

“And you moonlight as Supergirl?” Kara nods again, adjusts to shift herself closer.

 

“Come take a walk with me, outside. We’ll go and have some tea. And you can tell me all about the life you’ve built for yourself. And I…,” Lena hesitates, clears her throat. It thunders in Kara’s ears. Lena presses her lips to the crown of Kara’s head. “I… will ask for your forgiveness, for having handled everything so poorly.”

 

“Okay,” Kara whispers back, feels the tension bleed out of Lena’s grip around her. She smiles into Lena’s neck, breathes out, closes her eyes.

**Author's Note:**

> look me up on twitter @fingerprintsg
> 
> i literally just created this account to tweet ramblings about supergirl so like it's kinda empty right now


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